WIP Smart

"So, what has she been working on?" I'm sure you're all wondering.

After finding myself free from the chains of any unfinished projects, I decided to immediately jump back into the fray (LOLOMG) with something big and involved and gorgeous. Rowan 44 came to mind at once; I bought the magazine a month or so ago, mainly because I like looking at the pictures, though I hadn't any intention of embarking on one of the patterns right away. The Nostalgia patterns are very pretty, but I like the Renaissance story best. The pieces in Renaissance show so much artistry and narrative, and I love the idea of designing around a historical period that fashionwise, at first glance, seems utterly nonapplicable to modern life. It's odd and wonderful that silouettes and color stories from such a long time ago can seem so daring and chic today. I might have been channeling this spirit a little bit while working on my Parson's collage, which is DONE, by the way. Here's one little part of it that I had to assemble before adding it to the whole. I took this picture so I'd know how to glue the individual pieces together.



I finally decided on Giotto, which you can kind of see here if you squint. This is the first time that I'm using the exact yarn in the exact colors the pattern calls for...somewhat. The body of the sweater is knit in Rowan Kid Classic, and that's where I stayed totally true to the pattern. After you finish knitting the garment, you go back and embellish it with embroidery, in different colors of Rowan Wool Cotton. I mixed this up a bit, only getting four different colors to embellish with, instead of the approximately two thousand called for in the pattern. I'm still working on the front piece, but since the entire thing is just a front and back (no sleeves), I'm pretty pleased with my progress so far. This is the first big stranded colorwork project I've ever done, and I am enjoying it. It's definitely a technique that requires a certain amount of concentration, but the Kid Classic is such a dream to work with I almost don't mind having to rip back the same row half a dozen times because I keep screwing up the pattern.